Squawking with 'Walking Dead' Daryl (sans crossbow)

What a week! Highlights include Daryl from "The Walking Dead," Jack Welch, Jim Chanos, T. Boone Pickens, Sam Zell, and yachts versus 11-foot kayaks. This is Talking Squawk, the official "Squawk Box" blog, providing tidbits, insights, and some sarcastic reflections on the WEEK THAT WAS and the WEEK TO COME from the notepad of the show's senior executive producer.

Adam Jeffery | CNBC

Jack Welch

Welch way

Jack Welch is our favorite guest of ALL-TIME.

Nobody tells it to us like Jack, and he's been coming on this show for as long as it has been in existence. (BTW, we're in year 18!)

He told it to us "Straight from the Gut" back then, and he's still teaching us his "Winning" ways to this day. (Jack, do I get extra points for creative writing links?)

So you want the unedited, hit-you-over-the-head answer to what he thinks about the government shutdown and how to fix it?

He told "Squawk Box" on Friday that the resident has become too powerful relative to Congress, and the Republicans are the worst marketers of their ideas.

Source: The Walking Dead | AMC

Norman Reedus as Daryl Dixon in "The Walking Dead."

"Talking Squawk" Dead?

OK, follow me here.

There's a show about the show "The Walking Dead" on AMC called "Talking Dead." On "Talking Dead," they sit around and talk about what happened on "The Walking Dead" that week. We find that a little odd. The reason for our skepticism is that CNBC has a blog called "Talking Squawk." This "Talking Squawk" blog strangely enough talks about what happened on the show called "Squawk Box."

If we had figured this out in advance, we would never have invited AMC Networks President Charles Collier or the guy who plays the "Walking Dead" zombie-killing, crossbow-wielding Daryl Dixon (real name, Norman Reedus @wwwbigbaldhead) to talk about this Sunday's big Season 4 premiere! Watch video of their interview.

I can't believe they sneaked that past us! But I will say right here and now, our interview was a hard-hitting piece of journalism full of critiques on how to make the show better. (We love you Daryl!)

Mr. Shorty

He's one of the world's most famous short sellers. Unlike the traditional approach to investing, Jim Chanos makes most of his money (a fortune BTW) by figuring out what's not working. One company he still thinks isn't working very well is Hewlett-Packard, which he's been short since the 2012 CNBC-Institutional Investor Delivering Alpha Conference.

Chanos also gave us his take on the government shutdown and possible ways we can get out of this mess. But he said the signals from the stock market provide hope.

Doomsday scenario

Want a doomsday scenario on this whole government shutdown? Jes Staley of Blue Mountain Capital said its simple: Default on our debt and the impact will be felt around the world like the cloud of dust that killed the dinosaurs after the giant asteroid hit.

Look Ma, no hands! GM's self-driving car

CNBC's Phil LeBeau gets behind the wheel of General Motor's newest vehicle, which can almost drive itself.

Look Ma', no hands

We love @lebeaucarnews (yep, that's our Phil LeBeau's Twitter handle). And we trust his judgment when it comes to cars. But Phil, do you really think no-hands driving is a good idea? Watch the video.

Gellin' with Yellen

It looks like come 2014, we'll be "Gellin' with Yellen." It was the worst-kept secret. We even got those nerdy economists signing that letter and giving us the "JA-NET YELL-EN!" March on Washington cheer! But we don't anticipate that Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) will be "Gellin with Yellen" anytime soon. Read and watch his interview here.

Adam Jeffery | CNBC

T. Boone Pickens

T. Boone math

Word problem time! Four, minus two, minus one equals ... T. Boone Pickens's answer to how he was knocked off the Forbes billionaire list. He had $4 billion. He lost $2 billion on bad bets. He gave $1 billion away to charity and his beloved Oklahoma State University. That leaves him with just about $1 billion.

So how's he going to get the money back? Think Peter Lynch: Invest in what you know. And Pickens knows energy. Here's his take on the Keystone XL pipeline and how it would make OPEC obsolete.

Squawkward moment

Andrew Ross Sorkin to Dominic Chu: "You made it through your first hit on this show. You are no longer a 'Squawk' virgin."

The new C-note features high-tech designs to thwart counterfeiters, reports CNBC's Becky Quick.

The new $105 bill?

Would you pay $105 for a new edition of the $100 bill just to have it before anyone else? How about paying $3 for a $2 bill? Or maybe you would pay $2 for a Susan B. Anthony dollar? They say value is in the eye of the beholder. These deep thoughts are courtesy of Joe Kernen, Becky Quick, and Andrew in this week's Executive Edge.

Sam Zell

He's a motorcycle-riding real estate billionaire and he's never been found at a loss for words. Sam Zell spent two hours on the "Squawk Box" set this week. Check out his argument on why Washington is so broken and why the tea party is not crazy.

Yum Brands missed the mark with its latest earnings report. This seems impossible to us on "Squawk Box" because it owns Taco Bell. These are the guys who actually created a multithousand-calorie salad and the "Fiery Doritos Locos Taco." Joe was relieved to find out the problem was with KFC, not with our beloved Taco Bell.

Source: Feadship

Megayacht Musashi

When size does matter

Wealth Reporter Robert Frank (follow him at @RobTFrank) has a cool job. He's gets to play with the toys of the super-rich. We're talking 400- to 500-foot yachts with movie theaters. Check out his report: My mega-yacht's bigger than yours.

AllThingsD reports that Apple will hold a fall iPad event Oct. 22. Among the highlights, the fifth- generation iPad is expected to feature a thinner, lighter design and an improved camera. It's to run Apple's new 64-bit, A7 chip and will likely sport the fingerprint sensor featured in the iPhone 5s.

Sounds cool—but where's the idiot-proof, shock-proof system that would prevent damage from Dads who run over theirs with a minivan?

@JohnJHarwood, yes, I blew it on the Rick Perry opportunity. I wasn't thinking. But I have a 2-year-old. Anyone can have a brain freeze.

(I don't know if you all fully appreciate the opportunity here. I mean think about it, tens of dozens of people read this blog every week! OK, maybe some of those dozens are my Mom re-reading it, but still!)

Overheard on the set

Anchor 1: "I got in early so I could appear on 'Way Too Early with Brian Shactman.' Threw off my whole shower routine."

Anchor 2: "Meaning you didn't shower?"

Matthew J. Belvedere | CNBC

"Squawk Box" co-hosts Joe Kernen and Becky Quick keep a handwritten record of their daily Word Jumble standings going back years.

Word Jumble

Joe and Becky love to play the word jumble in the paper—seven years running, and Becky has the weekly handwritten scores to prove it! This week, Becky is on a roll with three wins to Joe's one.

*Joe's bonus Jumbled word of the week: BYCBAR

*Becky's bonus jumbled word of the week: PRAPEN

*Answers at the end

Set yours DVRs (and I mean REALLY set the DVR's! Check out this line-up!)